Trade

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection
Service (APHIS) plays a vital role in ensuring the free flow of agricultural
trade. APHIS' efforts include keeping U.S. agricultural industries free from
pests and diseases and certifying that the millions of U.S. agricultural and
food products shipped to markets abroad meet the importing countries' entry
requirements. APHIS makes sure that all imported agricultural products shipped
to the United States from abroad meet the Agency's entry requirements to
exclude pests and diseases of agriculture. APHIS also keeps export markets open for
American agricultural products by working to eliminate unjustified sanitary or
phytosanitary (SPS) barriers - that is, concerns involving plant and animal
health - raised by U.S. trading partners. APHIS' team of technical experts,
based in the United States and abroad, includes scientists, veterinarians,
pathologists, and entomologists that advocate on behalf of U.S. agriculture.
They build relationships with their agricultural health and regulatory
counterparts in other countries and use scientific principles to make the case
for American agricultural exports, explaining to foreign officials why U.S.
commodities are safe to import. In fiscal year (FY) 2017, APHIS played a direct
role in opening new markets and retaining and expanding existing market access
for U.S. agricultural products valued at $2.1 billion. APHIS works closely with its partners at USDA's
Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) and the office of the U.S. Trade
Representative to maintain a coordinated, strategic approach to resolving SPS
trade-barrier issues and other trade policy challenges facing the Agency. In
addition, APHIS personnel play leadership roles within international
standard-setting organizations, such as the World Organization for Animal
Health and the International Plant Protection Convention, that develop
science-based standards for the safe trade in agricultural products between
countries. APHIS also helps to resolve urgent problems
involving U.S. shipments detained at foreign ports of entry. APHIS personnel
stationed in countries overseas work closely with their foreign counterparts in
such situations to answer their questions, provide requested information, and
hopefully negotiate a favorable outcome for the U.S. exporter. In FY17, APHIS
successfully obtained the release over 278 individual shipments of U.S.
agricultural products, worth more than $48 million. APHIS is committed to removing trade barriers
related to animal and plant health concerns, protecting and expanding existing
markets, and opening new market access for U.S. agricultural exports. See below
for more information on the outcomes of APHIS' efforts on behalf of exporters
in FY2018 or click on the links to the left to learn more about the services
APHIS provides for agricultural exporters.